Francis Ngannou admits he never wanted to leave UFC: ‘I had a contract that I had no leverage in’
Former undisputed heavyweight champion, Francis Ngannou has revealed he never actually wanted to depart the UFC following his high-profile exit from the Dana White-led promotion back in January of this year, however, claimed that contract he was subject to and fighting under left him no real choice but to leave.
Ngannou, a former undisputed heavyweight champion under the banner of the promotion, departed the Octagon back in January of this year, having completed his contractual obligations with the above-mentioned, White-guided UFC, having remained sidelined through a brutal knee injury suffered ahead of a title fight with Ciryl Gane back in January of last year.
In his final Octagon affair, the Batié native turned in an impressive unanimous decision win over then-interim gold holder, Gane, in what would come as his swansong in the UFC.
Since turning his hand to a multi-fight deal with the PFL (Professional Fighters League), Ngannou also made a professional boxing debut against undisputed WBC heavyweight champion, Tyson Fury back in October, turning in a spectacular performance en route to a dubious split decision loss.
Francis Ngannou addresses UFC exit
And reflecting on his departure from the UFC, Ngannou claimed the decision was more or less taken out of his hand due to his restrictive contract.
“It was a decision, if it was up to me, I wouldn’t have taken that decision,” Francis Ngannou said during an appearance on Club Shay Shay. “The situation made me make that decision, but it wasn’t something that I was expecting or that I was thinking. I got to the point where I realized that for my best [interest], I had to make the right decision for myself and that was a good decision for myself.”
“I had a contract that I have no leverage in that contract,” Francis Ngannou explained. “No power. Nobody can advocate for me.”
Do you ever expect to see Francis Ngannou make a return to the UFC?
